BY YAAKOV KATZ, JPOST
Five Hamas operatives arrested en route to commit attacks in Israel.
After a media blackout was lifted Thursday, the defense establishment revealed that the IDF and Shin Bet (Israel Security Agency) had foiled a Hamas attempt to kidnap an IDF soldier.
Five Hamas men were arrested on December 12, 2009, while trying to infiltrate Israel from Egypt, carrying explosives, a gun, a silencer and $15,000 in counterfeit bills, according to the announcement.
During the arrest, two of the operatives were wounded. The attack was planned by Rahad Said, a senior commander in the group’s military wing in Gaza, a defense source said.
In his interrogation, Salaman Abu Atik, a 43-year-old senior Hamas member specializing in weapons smuggling, confessed to having infiltrated Israel at the behest of Hamas to carry out a terror attack and kidnap an IDF soldier, according to the defense establishment.
Hamas had reportedly hoped that the kidnapped soldier would serve as a bargaining chip in prisoner exchange negotiations with Israel.
Atik also admitted to having been sent on several other occasions by Hamas into Israel with the intent of commit terrorist acts - plans that were never actualized.
Atik told his interrogators that another Hamas activist, Ibrahim Za’arah, was planning to enter Israel to commit a terrorist act. Based on the intelligence information provided to Shin Bet by Atik, Za’arah, 44, was arrested on December 31 with two bombs on his person weighing 6-7 kilograms, as well as detonation devices.
Za’arah confessed during his interrogation to planning to plant the bombs in heavily populated areas. Za’arah said he was ordered to carry out the attack within 10 days after entering Israel.
He also admitted that he entered the country in order to assist Atik in kidnapping and murdering an IDF soldier.
